Glossary of Key Terms

by Michael Bear

category: Humanitarian Relief

Published October 05, 2008 @ 07:47PM PT

The humanitarian community sometimes seems to communicate in its own language.  To that end, below is a list of some of the most important terms and acronyms, as well as their definitions.

Consolidated Appeals Process (CAP): A consolidated appeal is “when several agencies together appeal for funds for the same crisis. It is a snapshot of a situation and identifies who does what and where.” It also serves an important coordination function. The Consolidated Appeals Process is overseen by the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator and the Humanitarian Coordinator in the field.

Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF): A multilateral funding instrument managed by the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, which makes grants available to humanitarian agencies in the immediate aftermath of a humanitarian crisis. Launched in March 2006, it received contributions totaling $432 million dollars from January through September 2008, over which time it has contributed $315.8 million to over 300 humanitarian projects.

Civil-Military Coordination (CMCOORD or CIMIC): “The dialogue and interaction between civilian and military actors in humanitarian emergencies that is necessary to protect and promote humanitarian principles, avoid competition, minimize inconsistency, and when appropriate pursue common goals. Basic strategies range from coexistence to cooperation.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Cluster Approach: As part of broader humanitarian reform efforts, the cluster approach seeks to improve coordination by designating a lead UN agency to lead on specific sectors (including agriculture, camp coordination, early recovery, education, emergency shelter, emergency telecommunications, health, logistics, nutrition, protection and water, sanitation and hygiene), and clarifying the division of labor between humanitarian organizations involved in these various activities.

Complex Emergency: A multifaceted humanitarian crisis in a country, region or society where there is a total or considerable breakdown of authority resulting from internal or external conflict and which requires a multi-sectoral, international response that goes beyond the mandate or capacity of any single agency and/or the ongoing UN country programme. Such emergencies have, in particular, a devastating effect on children and women, and call for a complex range of responses.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR): “Programmes to disarm, demobilize and reintegrate ex-combatants in a peacekeeping context as part of a peace process.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Development Assistance: Bilateral and multilateral assistance meant to address the economic, social and political causes of poverty.

Do No Harm: The Do No Harm approach “seeks to identify the ways in which international humanitarian and/or development assistance given in conflict settings may be provided so that, rather than exacerbating and worsening the conflict, it helps local people disengage from fighting and develop systems for settling the problems which prompt conflict within their societies.” (CDA Do No Harm Project)

Flash Appeal: Triggered by the UN Humanitarian Coordinator within one week of an emergency, the flash appeal “is a tool for structuring a coordinated humanitarian response for the first three to six months of an emergency…[providing] a concise overview of urgent life saving needs”.

Gender-Based Violence (GBV): Violence that is directed against a person on the basis of gender or sex. It includes acts that inflict physical, mental, or sexual harm or suffering, threats of such acts, coercion, or other deprivations of liberty. While women, men, boys and girls can be victims of gender-based violence, because of their subordinate status, women and girls are the primary victims.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Hearts and Minds: Activities carried out by a military force to win the support of the local population. According to the US Military Counterinsurgency Manual, “’Hearts’ means persuading people that their best interest are served by [the success of counter-insurgent forces]. ‘Minds’ means convincing them that the force can protect them and that resisting it is pointless.” Hearts and minds operations often take the form of small scale Quick Impact Projects (QIPs), which often resemble humanitarian or development activities. Humanitarian organizations are often concerned that QIPs “blur the lines” between humanitarian and military actors, thereby increasing the threats faced by aid workers in the field.

Humanitarian Access: The ability of humanitarian agencies to reach those in need. Humanitarian access is premised on the fact that “vulnerable populations have a right to receive international protection and assistance from an impartial humanitarian relief operation.”

Humanitarian Accountability Partnership (HAP): “[The mission of] HAP International is to make humanitarian action accountable to its intended beneficiaries through self-regulation, compliance verification and quality assurance certification.” HAP currently has 22 NGO members.

Humanitarian Intervention: "[A] doctrine generally understood to mean coercive action by States involving the use of armed force in another State without the consent of its government, with or without authorization from the UN Security Council, for the purpose of preventing or putting to a halt gross and massive violations of human rights or international humanitarian law.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Humanitarian Principles: "As per UN General Assembly Resolution 46/182 (19 December 1991), humanitarian assistance must be provided in accordance with the principles of humanity, neutrality and impartiality [see below]. Adherence to these principles reflects a measure of accountability of the humanitarian community.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Humanitarian Reform: Since the early 1990s, a series of reform efforts have tried to address the lack of “coverage, coordination and effectiveness” that often characterizes humanitarian operations, especially when hundreds of organizations (including UN agencies, the Red Cross / Red Crescent movements, and NGOs) suddenly converge on a crisis to offer assistance, each with its own mandate and agenda. Recent reforms have focused on ensuring flexible and timely financing (in particular through the use of Pooled / Common Humanitarian Funds and CERF) , strengthening the Humanitarian Coordinator system, and implementing the “Cluster Approach”, which seeks to improve coordination by designating a lead UN agency to lead on specific sectors.

Humanitarian Relief (Humanitarian Assistance): "Aid that seeks, to save lives and alleviate suffering of a crisis-affected population. Humanitarian assistance must be provided in accordance with the basic humanitarian principles of humanity, impartiality and neutrality, as stated in General Assembly Resolution 46/182. In addition, the UN seeks to provide humanitarian assistance with full respect for the sovereignty of States. Assistance may be divided into three categories - direct assistance, indirect assistance and infrastructure support - which have diminishing degrees of contact with the affected population.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Humanitarian Space: “[H]umanitarian space is often used to denote areas to which humanitarian agencies have safe and protected access, in order to provide urgent relief assistance. This is generally dependent on the consent and cooperation of the controlling authorities. It may also depend on protection by military forces, for instance through supporting or creating safe zones, protecting relief convoys and corridors, or helping civilians to reach places of sanctuary…[H]umanitarian space [also]tends to refer to the scope for impartial and independent humanitarian action. It is achieved when sufficient policy emphasis is given to supporting the protection and assistance of civilians, according to international humanitarian law. For impartial relief actors, this means being allowed to operate freely, to have access to civilians in need (regardless of their ‘strategic value’), and to pursue dialogue with all parties to a conflict.” (HPG – Resetting the Rules of Engagement)

Humanity: “Human suffering must be addressed wherever it is found, with particular attention to the most vulnerable in the population, such as children, women and the elderly. The dignity and rights of all victims must be respected and protected.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC): “The Inter-Agency Standing Committee (IASC) is the primary mechanism for inter-agency coordination of humanitarian assistance. It is a unique forum involving the key UN and non-UN humanitarian partners.”

International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC): The ICRC has a permanent mandate, based on the Geneva Conventions, to “help victims of conflict and internal violence”.

Impartiality: "Humanitarian assistance must be provided without discriminating as to ethnic origin, gender, nationality, political opinions, race or religion. Relief of the suffering must be guided solely by needs and priority must be given to the most urgent cases of distress.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Independence: NGOs strive to operate independently from governments, which means refusing to “act as instruments of foreign policy” of a donor government or gather “information of a political, military or economically sensitive nature” for governments.

Internally Displaced Person (IDP): "Persons or groups of persons who have been forced or obliged to leave their homes or habitual residence, in particular as a result of or in order to avoid the effects of armed conflict, situations of generalized violence, violations of human rights or natural or human-made disasters, and who have not crossed an internationally recognized State border.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

International Federation Red Cross Red and Crescent Societies (IFRC): The IFRC is the world’s largest humanitarian organization, comprising a Secretariat in Geneva and 186 member Red Cross and Red Crescent societies. The IFRC “carries out relief operations to assist victims of disasters…[and] focuses on four core areas: promoting humanitarian values, disaster response, disaster preparedness, and health and community care.” IFRC is also the cluster co-lead for emergency shelter.

International Humanitarian Law (IHL): "A body of rules that seek, for humanitarian reasons, to limit the effects of armed conflict. >It protects persons who are not or are no longer participating in the hostilities and restricts the means and methods of warfare by prohibiting weapons that make no distinction between combatants and civilians or weapons and methods of warfare which cause unnecessary injury, suffering and/or damage. The rules are to be observed not only by governments and their armed forces, but also by armed opposition groups and any other parties to a conflict. The four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their two Additional Protocols of 1977 are the principal instruments of humanitarian law.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

International Organization for Migration (IOM): “Established in 1951, IOM is the leading inter-governmental organization in the field of migration and works closely with governmental, intergovernmental and non-governmental partners.” (IOM website.) IOM is also the cluster co-lead for camp coordination / camp management.

Neutrality: “Humanitarian assistance must be provided without engaging in hostilities or taking sides in controversies of a political, religious or ideological nature.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Non-Governmental Organization (NGO): “An organized entity that is functionally independent of, and does not represent, a government or State. It is normally applied to organizations devoted to humanitarian and human rights causes.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Protection: "A concept that encompasses all activities aimed at obtaining full respect for the rights of the individual in accordance with the letter and spirit of human rights, refugee and international humanitarian law. Protection involves creating an environment conducive to respect for human beings, preventing and/or alleviating the immediate effects of a specific pattern of abuse, and restoring dignified conditions of life through reparation, restitution and rehabilitation. [Also structures] and policies developed by the UN, States and other humanitarian actors, and based in international humanitarian law, human rights and refugee law, to protect vulnerable populations from the effects of armed conflict, ranging from the most immediate priorities of minimizing civilian casualties to more long-term priorities of promoting the rule of law and security, law and order within a State.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Quick Impact Projects (QIPs): See “Hearts and Minds”

Recovery: “A multi-dimensional process, guided by development principles, that seeks to build upon humanitarian programmes and to catalyze sustainable development opportunities.”

Refugee: "A person, who owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, or for reasons owing to external aggression, occupation, foreign domination or events seriously disturbing public order in either part or the whole of his country of origin or nationality, is compelled to leave his place of habitual residence in order to seek refuge outside his country of origin or nationality and is unable or, owing to such fear, is unwilling to avail himself of the protection of his country of origin or nationality.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Responsibility to Protect (R2P): "A concept that imposes a responsibility on the international community to protect a population that is suffering serious harm, as a result of internal war, insurgency, repression or state failure, and the state in question is unwilling or unable to halt or avert it. The 2001 Report of the International Commission on Intervention and State Sovereignty (ICISS) notes that the responsibility to protect encompasses three essential components: (1) The responsibility to prevent a human catastrophe by addressing root causes and direct causes of internal conflict and other man-made crises; (2) The responsibility to react to an actual or apprehended situation of compelling human need, should one occur, with appropriate measures, which may include coercive measures such as sanctions, international prosecution and military intervention in extreme cases; and (3) The responsibility to rebuild after the intervention through the provision of full assistance with recovery, reconstruction and reconciliation.” (OCHA Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Key United Nations (UN) Officials:

Country Team: “The ensemble of agencies of the UN System in a given country. The objective of inter-agency cooperation in general… is to ensure that a coherent approach is taken by UN bodies in their collective response to humanitarian, developmental, and other strategies relevant to the country in which they are operating.” (ReliefWeb Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Emergency Relief Coordinator (ERC): “The Under-Secretary-General [USG] for Humanitarian Affairs also carries the title of Emergency Relief Coordinator. In this role, the ERC coordinates the international response to humanitarian emergencies and disasters.” (ReliefWeb Glossary of Humanitarian Terms)

Humanitarian Coordinator: “When faced with the threat of a full-blown crisis, the USG/ERC, in consultation with the members of the IASC, may identify the need to designate a humanitarian coordinator, who becomes the most senior UN humanitarian official on the ground for the emergency, accountable to the USG/ERC for ensuring a quick, effective and well-coordinated assistance.  The appointment of an HC signals both the need for a full-time coordinator of the humanitarian response during the crisis and the need for a long-term humanitarian presence in the country.” (OCHA website)

Special Representative of the Secretary General (SRSG): An SRSG is appointed by the UN Secretary General to serve as his representative in a given country.

Key UN Agencies:

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO): FAO “leads international efforts to defeat hunger, [acting] as a neutral forum where all nations meet as equals to negotiate agreements and debate policy. FAO is also a source of knowledge and information.” (FAO website.) FAO is also the cluster lead for agriculture.

Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA): “OCHA's mission is to mobilise and coordinate effective and principled humanitarian action in partnership with national and international actors in order to: alleviate human suffering in disasters and emergencies; advocate for the rights of people in need; promote preparedness and prevention; [and]facilitate sustainable solutions.” (OCHA website.) OCHA is also the cluster co-lead for emergency telecommunications.

Office for the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR): “The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) represents the world's commitment to universal ideals of human dignity. We have a unique mandate from the international community to promote and protect all human rights.” (OHCHR website.) OHCHR is also the cluste